ALFA Romeo GT test drive since 2004

Bella "Alpha"

Alfa Romeo GT 2.0 JTS
Last spring, Alfa-Romeo GT from Atelier Berton was shown at the Geneva Motor Show, and at the end of 2003 the car went to the series.
A three -door five -seater hatchback resembling a sports compartment is built on the model of model 156.
Equipped with gasoline motors 1.8; 2.0; 3.2 l or 1.9-liter turbodiesel. Gearboxes are five -speed mechanical and automatic mod with manual control function.
The price range in Italy for cars in basic trim levels is from 26,200 to 36,500 euros, the maximum price with additional equipment is 42,000 euros, the cost of a test car is 36,000 euros.
Apenin icon
Bella Alpha! Belissima !!! The driver of a crumpled punto, on which, it seems, there was not a single whole body of the body left, expressively gestured and smacked his lips, expressing the highest degree of delight. Finally, the green caught fire, several cracons instantly reacted from behind, including a trumpet roar of some kind of dump truck, and Fiat took ahead, bouncing on a latan-altered Neapolitan pavement.
Increased attention was felt constantly, Alfa Romeo in Italy is an icon and national pride. What can we say about the latest sports compartment visitors to the street cafes deployed chairs to better consider Alfa Romeo GT. There is something to admire: a stylish squat body is as if cut out of one block and looks like a predator’s body, poured by grace and inner strength. The appearance is concise, there is not a single extra detail, traditionally small rear lights and completely turned into two narrow ruby \u200b\u200bslots. All shine is focused on the front on the corporate triangular shield.
A machine with huge doors and narrow frameless glasses is perceived precisely as a coupe of the Gran of Tourism. Although, strictly speaking, this is a three -door hatchback, and quite practical. There will be enough space in front of a two -meter uncle, however, not too fed, otherwise it will not fit in a deep profiled chair. At the back there are three sizes 48/3 or a couple of larger. There is a completely roomy trunk for 320/905 liters. Alpha GT is built on the basis of the model 156: the front drive wheels located transversely the engine.
What the Italian does not like fast driving!
We are almost used to a crazy South Italian movement, although the photographer sometimes closes his eyes and mutters something when the person oncoming on a narrow street flies in a few centimeters not without reason many cars are torn off external mirrors. However, they are tiny with us, maybe they will survive. But here the sound of the motor’s sound, with metal notes, spectacularly reflects from the medieval walls, it spurges and excites. Incidentally, the engine is not simple: a 2-liter 165-horsepower unit is equipped with fuel injection directly into the cylinders. With him, Alpha exchanges a hundred in just 8.7 s and reaches 216 km/h.
While slowly getting out of the city, Selespeed works in City mode, like a regular machine. Differences only in acoustic accompaniment (in silence is well heard by the clang when the transmission is turned on) and in the absence of a hydrotransformer, the friction clutch is more sharply, with dynamic dispersal overclocking, it is accompanied by jerks, so that you have to slightly discard gas. Depending on the intensity of pressing the brake pedal, the box automatically switches one to two gears down, helping to slow down with the engine.
Here is the foot of Vesuvia, here you can try manual control to shake back and forth a thin joystick-sector, but much more convenient for the wheelbakes. Especially on the mountain road: before entering the turn, he pressed a couple of times on the left handle and instead of the IV transmission already II, although with some delay. Moreover, intelligent electronics will not forget to give gas so that a sharp increase in the brake moment from the engine does not tear the wheel into the south. However, manual control is not disconnected in automatic mode, simply the transfer in this case is not fixed for a long time.
It is a pity that the Sport does not have a Sport control: the effort on it, although it grows with speed, is not intense enough. Especially considering the high sharpness of the steering wheel only 2.2 turns from the stop to the stop! True, the rearrangement may not work: with a sharp turn of the steering wheel, it seems to rest against a slowly retreating obstacle, it seems that there is not enough amplifier performance.
However, on the high -speed highway, millimeter movements are comfortable but empty steering in constant tension. Oddly enough, the excellent chassis in this situation only complicates the life of the Alpha driver is ready to instantly fulfill any team, including random, which is very likely with such an acute control. He was a little distracted, involuntarily jerked his hand and immediately turned out to be half a meter to the right or to the left.
Flies with cutlets
At the beginning of the test there was a word. Very emotional, so we will lower it. Then it is quite literary: look that my wiper is doing! The colleague touched the key, the glass slipped up and immediately returned to the lower position. Not otherwise, an automatic opening is erroneously triggered in case of a hand or other object under the glass. After a few minutes of struggle, the defect was now mutated the glass rose with jerks of several centimeters. There was something to boast of me: out of eight directions for adjusting the external mirrors, the servo was practiced only one dropped the right one.
Probably all these are random problems of a particular machine. But how to explain such a illogical combination of governing bodies? Very similar buttons are scattered along the console and tunnel in pairs for turning on the fog and open the trunk, to turn on the rear fog lights and lock the central lock, open the gas tank and turn off the stabilization system. They are very easy to confuse, especially on the go! Was it really impossible to group in the functional proximity of the fly in one direction, cutlets in the other?
The last day in Pompey
Wesuvio so called him so tightly a hat of the clouds, the shadow fell on the ancient ruins. We get out on the tangential to rewind the last thousand kilometers to the north in Turin. The gas station tumor is delighted with the tongue of Belissima! In general, I agree with him: Alfa-Romeo GT is really very effective externally, but its character is very contradictory. It has many strengths, but, alas, there was a place and disadvantages.
The alpha-romeo GT is similar to Italian beautiful, stylish, temperamental, surprisingly economic, but in some ways contradictory and illogical.
+ Stylish appearance, tenacious suspension, sharp steering wheel, excellent brakes, good dynamics, convenient planting, rich equipment, a fairly roomy interior, practical trunk.
- fuzzy operation of the gearbox in some modes, weak reactive effect on the steering wheel, disadvantages in ergonomics, uneven gaps between body panels.
 
Yuri Nechetov
Photo: George Sadkov

  
 

Source: The magazine "Driving"